When No. 11 Florida traveled to New Haven, Conn., to face Yale, the game was going to be a homecoming of sorts for senior Erik Murphy. The South Kingstown, R.I., native planned on having family and friends make the hour long trip to watch him play Sunday night.
But the trip didn’t work out as expected.
Family and friends watched as the Gators defeated the Bulldogs 79-58 with Murphy sidelined. The 6-foot-10 forward missed his first game since a 72-68 loss at Syracuse on Dec. 2, 2011, after fracturing one of his ribs during Friday’s practice.
“I had broken two (ribs) in college and it was probably a good four to six weeks before I was pain free,” coach Billy Donovan said. “When it is a bruise, it is probably going to be a week to 10 days.”
Murphy first experienced discomfort on Dec. 29, during Florida’s 78-61 victory against Air Force in Sunrise.
Despite taking a hit, Murphy continued to play. The senior stayed on the court for 29 minutes, led the Gators with 21 points on 8-of-10 shooting and tallied seven rebounds, four assists and three blocks in the win.
After returning from the game, Murphy participated in the next three practices without a problem. But after making contact with a teammate during Friday’s practice, Murphy was ruled out for Sunday’s game.
“[The injury is] in a really, really bad spot,” Donovan said. “So anytime he raises his arms up, or lifts his arm or reaches his arms up, there’s a significant amount of pain.”
Donovan briefly included Murphy in the team shootaround before Florida faced Yale, but the pain was too much for the senior to play.
Murphy didn’t practice on Monday, and Donovan doesn’t anticipate that he will practice on Tuesday either. He is doubtful for Florida’s Southeastern Conference opener against Georgia on Wednesday night at 7 in the O’Connell Center.
“He is cleared to play right now, but it is all up to him, (and) how much pain he can tolerate,” Donovan said. “He is not going to significantly hurt himself anymore because he’s going to be padded up. And it’s not going to be a problem, but what happens is if he gets hit there or reaches and stretches, it becomes so uncomfortable.”
In Murphy’s absence, Kenny Boynton and Will Yeguete both stepped up against the Bulldogs.
Boynton tied a career-high 28 points while adding two assists and two rebounds. Yeguete followed suit by scoring 14 points on 6-of-8 shooting and had a team-high nine rebounds.
“Getting Will Yeguete back where he played [Sunday] with the level of intensity and passion, the things he’s capable of doing, really helped our team,” Donovan said.
Murphy has been a key part of the Gators’ offense, ranking second with 12.1 points per game.
But even with Murphy doubtful for Wednesday, shuffling the starting lineup is nothing new for Florida. The Gators have already played four games with a shorthanded lineup due to Scottie Wilbekin’s suspension and Casey Prather’s multiple concussions.
Previously playing without its full roster gives Florida confidence as they face the possibility of losing Murphy for multiple games.
“We missed [Murphy] a lot,” Yeguete said. “But we’re going to find another way to play without him.”
Contact Katie Agostin at kagostin@alligator.org.
Forward Erik Murphy battles for the ball against during Florida’s 78-61 win against Air Force on Dec. 29 in the BB&T Center in Sunrise.
